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Sign-Ups are open all season long, you can start the action whenever you want and join the process!

Rewriting the Future - General Discussion Thread

Have you ever thought about how the world of cycling would look like if you were in control? Have you ever seen your favourite rider in a race, where you thought he might be wrong? Have you ever thought about how your favourite rider could look like if he would lay his training focus on something different? Have you ever felt angry about a line-up of your favourite team in a race? Have you ever ranted about the contract decisions of your home squad? And finally, Have you ever thought about how a race would look like under different conditions. Have you ever wanted to control a race by adding some crosswind or having other breakaway riders?

If youâ€™ve answered all these questions with no, then you should get the hell outta here, cause there is nothing you might enjoy about it. But if youâ€™ve answered some of these questions with yes, this might be the next joyful waste of time for you. Let me proudly present your chance to change the action. Your chance to be a decisive part in the world of cycling. Your chance to rewrite the future!

What is it about?

Rewriting the Future is a real-time project. We are basically having the real season 2017. But with one difference: The race reports will be available directly on the day before the race happens in real life. The aim of the project is to simulate the whole year of 2017 but in a different way, which means that one month in reality is exactly one month in the story (-game).

How can you take part?

There are three possibilities to take part in the project:

1. Rewrite the story of a rider:

Ever felt that your favourite rider isnâ€™t fulfilling his potential? Is he not going where he should go, training the areas he should train, setting the goals he could set? Well, you can settle different paths for up to 3 riders:

Basically, you control the rider and, within the limits of realism (that sentiment will be key for this game ), can do anything. Say what you/he is thinking, say who, what, where, when and how theyâ€™re training. Decide their schedule, their goals, their peaks. Forge rivalries and friendships. Negotiate with teams for contracts and schedules (riders usually take priority for the sake of the game). Rewrite their stories.

Each player can only have one world-class rider/talent, but that doesnâ€™t mean you have to have one! You could have 3 CT riders, Two WT riders and a PCT rider, the possibilities are endless! (Well, division-wise thereâ€™s 10 of them, but you knowâ€¦). This doesnâ€™t take much, just drop the names of your chosen rider(s) in your sign-up post(s) and weâ€™ll approve/ask you to modify them as we see fit!

If several players go for the same rider, then the riders choice will be decided by an explanation of your motivation. If plannings of the management of the rider and the management of team he rides for go into different directions, then the first choice of what happens is always a compromise-oriented dialogue; in second place the standing of the rider compared to the team will decide.

2. Rewrite the story of a team:

Want to turn your favourite small CT team into WT winners? Disappointed in the path a team is taking? Then you might try to take over a team.

As with the riders, within the limits of realism you can take control of the path of a team, from scheduling to training, race tactics to dealing with big egos, press releases to transfers and anything else! A major part will be the overall plan you need to figure out, especially on how and where to use your captains with which helpers and where you can give your talents/hidden gems their free role.

You can sign-up for your favourite CT, PCT or WT team. Taking a CT team doesnâ€™t require further investigation, but if you want to take a PCT or WT team an explanation of your motivation is needed. Additionally, your job is safer the weaker your team is. Managing a WT team might be very popular, so there might be much competition between possible managers. If your team is unhappy with your effort and another manager gives a good reason to sign him then sackings are very much possible.

3. Rewrite the story of a race:

Now, this is a little different so bear with us. It may sound hard but it can just be five lines! Rewriting the story of a race doesnâ€™t mean you can change the route or climate (depending on location, altitude, time of year, etc.) at all. Sure, the weather is up to you but remember realism as well. Yes, many will want that flat classic or stage to have crosswinds or a crash to make it entertaining for themselves and the reader, but in reality, is every race like that?

The biggest jobs you have here is keeping to the riders scheduled to be there (provided), reaching a deadline (this can be tough as itâ€™s real dates!), listening to all the pieces of role-play written in the thread thatâ€™s related to your race, including training (we recommend scanning through to see any that are riders on teams or teams themselves involved in your race then reading them, and also if you have time following them for the month or so before (e.g. if you are the Tour reporter, read how Froome and Quintana, etc. are doing in June). In addition, know where theyâ€™ve been. Have they been racing since Down Under? Have they already had a major peak this season? To continue the Tour analogy, did they ride the Giro, or Dauphine, or Suisse, or Sud, or their NCs? How did they do? Will they be tired? Not for every rider, but surely for those you expect to have a part to play. Of course, the higher the reputation of a race is the more of an insight into it is needed.

Results are not necessary - whilst itâ€™d be nice particularly in big races (by this we donâ€™t mean just WT but big HC and .1 races) to know who were the top riders (plus how the big favourites did) and have a good length and quality reports, for small races in the middle of the season with double digits number of races on could be a summary paragraph and a podium. In stage races, at least in your mind have at least a rough idea of the GC, plus points and KoM leaders (again, sometimes not the most important if you donâ€™t have time). In saying that, nobody is stopping you giving everyone a top 20 with times if you have the time and energy! This is also down to the fact that in a stage race people roleplay and PM you tactics (to the teams and riders, clearly title them with race + stage number if applicable and team/rider in the 18-26 hour period between races (giving a precise time when youâ€™ll start composing your race post will tell them when itâ€™s too late to send you tactics and for their role play to have an effect). Note that regular role-play and tactics are appreciated but your riders wonâ€™t decide they canâ€™t be bothered racing, the reporter will use their minds to fill in the gaps (in a stage raced based on the situation and previous tactics used). There is no need to send in tactics throughout the season at any time if you donâ€™t want to - your riders will do no worse or better in the long run, unless youâ€™re a cycling genius! Lastly, a preview, be it naming the five top favourites a few days before or a full, in-depth look at every aspect of the race, is preferred. In saying that, it should never take priority over your other races.

So how to sign up for a race? Well, for now, Youth, amateur (only raced if wanted), .2 (not every race is needed) and .1 races are first come first served, whilst HC and WT need some motivation shown and applied for in the same vein as the team sign-up. Through the season itâ€™s true some of you will gain more trust than others and you wonâ€™t need to apply for every race, but if a newbie comes in with a good application they could report an HC or WT event first go. Ideally, for the biggest events (GTs, monuments, big Continental races, etc.) youâ€™d apply/claim them earlier so as to watch the build-up and prepare. For now claiming will happen in this thread.

There will be four threads in total for this story (-game). This general thread, a rules & announcements thread, a racing thread starting on the 31st December and an interaction thread. The racing thread is about racing reports only and not for discussions, which are intended to happen in the general thread. The interaction thread is about every HQ-like post about your team/rider(s). Also, stuff like requests/negotiations on/with other riders/teams/the board should be done there. The board will announce special causes of interest, such as personal changes, injuries, race cancellation/changes/additions, unmanaged rider/team requests on managed teams and further stuff there. So itâ€™s also the newsboard of this story (-game). The general thread is for every discussion about races, quick puns or comments on teams/riders decisions, rants at the board for stupid gameplay or anything else you can imagine. The rules & announcements should make sure that game-breaking rules and topics are easy to find and research.

- story/role play game/competitive game crossover
- Every effort is recognized and has an impact on the gameâ€™s development (hidden progress/regress counts)
- Subjective realism â€“ every aspect has to be somewhat possible in the game
- Freedom of choice â€“ you can basically do everything you want: from planning choice to negotiate with riders to write some rants on the organisation
- Connections to new races, riders and teams
- The chance to take over the development of your favourite riders/teams/races and to see them rise (and fall)
- A semi-fictional cycling game that isnâ€™t based on stupid PCM gameplay

--> The chance to rewrite the action

Signing up is as easy as it can be: Just claim your team/riders (later: races) in this thread. Afterwards show in the interaction thread, why you want to take a certain rider/team. You do that by writing an introduction post for a certain rider or an application for the management job of a team. Of course this doesnâ€™t have to be a long letter, but it can be a nice first step into role-play action.

So what are you waiting for? Give yourself a go and sign up now!
Edited by Croatia14 on 07-02-2017 23:25

I doubt I'd have enough time but if anybody (Looking at you paul) would like to do a what if tony martin had stuck to hi climbing breakaways and hilly small tour potential i vaguely remember seeing from him in the htc days when he was free to ride for himself in the mountains instead of helping cav survive them I'd find it interesting. I think he ended up with atop 40 in the tour when he was there and youth jersey eligible so he must have had some talent for it before focusing so intensely on TT's.

I love the idea of this, and will obviously follow it, however I don't think I have the time and/or motivation to take part, at least not now. Perhaps I could decide to step in at a later date (if possible), after having followed things for a while first.

signing in is possible at any time of the year...and the workload is not really high...basically you just need a plan for how your rider should go and then enjoy the time you have by the manner of being a real life game

- TMM @ Team Sky: Basically the management part of the game should be about bringing a lower tier team up to higher grounds, and by that either promote with your team itself or show bigger teams why they should sign you as a manager - So for taking Team Sky you'd really need a convincing plan to show off, as it's highly unlikely to start right at the top.

If most team applications come in for WT only though then we'll open these possibilities to wider ranges I guess, and then you're of course the first guy to be asked for taking Team Sky.

- Tom Boonen & Tony Martin @ the_hoyle: normally I'd say that this

Each player can only have one world-class rider/talent

rules the possibility out, but with Boonen I guess it's a different case with the retirement plans.

Still I'd give others 48 hours from the claiming post on to make claims on the same rider (talking only about the world-class ones), to see if anybody wants a rider of those with real passion - and then let the motivation of taking the rider decide. If nobody scratches in in that time you can have both of them due to the retirement date as they then count as 1,4 superstars

- Chaves @ jandal7: same thing, 48 hours to claim the same guy, though it seems like it will be hard to beat that fantastic headstart in the interactions thread

Additionally: I'd like to take over a role in this game as well, but with this having a subjective note of course I would like to ask for any concerns first. If any will come in the next 24 hours I'd leave myself out and only to the race reporting and board actions. If you decide that I may take part myself, and let others decide about jandal/knockout about the developement process of my riders/team.